Baseboard electric heater



Feb. 6, 1962 H. E. HARRELL, JR

BASEBOARD ELECTRIC HEATER 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 5, 1959 Has I4 22 4| INVENTOR. HARRY E. HARRELL JR {\TTORNEYS Feb. 6, 1962 H. E. HARRELL, JR 3,020,382

BASEBOARD ELECTRIC HEATER Filed June 5, 1959 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 All INVENTOR.

HARRY E. HARRELL, JR.

BY A I ATTORNEYS United States Patent ice 3,020,382 BASEBOARD ELECTRIC HEATER Harry E. Harrell, Jr., 4028 NE. Prescott, Portland, Oreg.

Filed June 5, 1959, Ser. No. 818,338

3 Claims. (Cl. 219-34) The present inventionrelates to an electric baseboard heater having air flowing therearound.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a heater having means for guiding the air circulating through the heater. In the carrying out of this object, overheated areas adjacent the heater are eliminated, preventing damage to drapes, furniture, walls and the like.

, A still further object of this invention is to provide a heater of the class described above in which the air circulates through the heater in a manner to radiate the heat outwardly directly into the room and not rearwardly into contact with the wall.

Another object of thisinvention is to provide means for mounting a thermostat control within wiring compartments located on either end of the units and within the unit.

A further object of this invention is to provide a knockout plate adapted to be adjusted to align with the electric outlet associated with the baseboard of the Wall.

A still furtherobject is to provide a baseboard electric heater having mounting means for the heating element and radiating fins for holding the same in a fixed vertical position at all times, while allowing for expansion and contraction.

Other objects and advantages will become apparent in the following specification when considered in light of the attached drawings, in which:

FIGURE 1 is a front elevation of the invention shown partially broken away for convenience of illustration;

FIGURE 2 is an enlarged vertical sectional view, taken on line 2-2 of FIGURE 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 3 is an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view, taken on line 3-3 of FIGURE 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 4 is an enlarged vertical sectional view, taken on line 4-4 of FIGURE 1, looking in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 5 is an exploded plan view of the baseboard heater;

FIGURE 6 is a sectional view similar to FIGURE 2 with the parts exploded;

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of one of the heat radiating fins shown removed from the heating element;

FIGURE 8 is a fragmentary sectional View taken on line 8--8 of FIGURE 4, looking. in the direction of the arrows;

FIGURE 9 is a view similar to FIGURE 4 of a modified form of the invention; and

FIGURE 10 is a fragmentary sectional view taken on line 10-10 of FIGURE 9, looking in the direction of the arrows.

Referring now to the drawings in detail wherein like reference characters indicate like parts throughout the several figures, the reference character H indicates generally an electric baseboard heater constructed in accordance with the invention. a

The baseboard heater H includes an elongated generally rectangular housing 10 having an outwardly extending base 11 on its lower edge and an outwardly extending cap or air deflector 12 on its upper edge. A pair of outwardly extending saddle. members 13 are fixedly secured to the rear wall 14 of the housing 10 in spaced parallel relation, preferably by spot welding. A pair of rollers 15 are journalled to the lower portion of each of the saddles 13 on a Patented Feb. 6, 1962 generally horizontal shaft 16. The rollers 15 areconcave in form and have a space 17 therebetween.

A reflector 18 is provided with slots 19 formed in its back wall through which the saddles 13 extend when the refiector 18 is in place. When the reflector 18 is assembled, the upper edge 20 of the slots 19 rest in notches 21 formed on the upper surface of the saddles 13, holding the reflector 18 in place.

I The heating element assembly E includes an elongated metallic tube 22, having a rod type insulator 23 encased therein. The insulator 23 has longitudinal holes 24 running therethrough in which are positioned heating elements 25. Longitudinally extending ribs 26 are formed on oppositely disposed sides of the tube 22. Oneof the ribs 26 registers with the space 17 between the supporting rollers 15, preventing the heat assembly E from rotating once it has been installed within the saddles 13.

Disposed throughout the length of the heating element E directly on the tube 22 are spaced parallel heat radiating fins 27. The fins 27 have outwardly extending spacer elements 28 integrally formed thereon for spacing adjacent fins 27 apart throughout the length of the element E.

After the heating element E is installed, a face grill 29 is brought into place, as illustrated in FIGURE 2 particularly, and oppositely disposed clips 30 engage over the upper and lower outer ends 31 of the saddles 13 holding the grill 29 in place thereon. Openings, or slots, 32 are provided in the face of the grill 29 for allowing heat to radiate from the heating element E to the room to be heated.

Located within the compartment 33 in one end of the heater H is a thermostat 34, which may be adjusted by means of an adjusting knob 35 located on the face of the heater H.

In order to adapt the heater to various elevations of electric outlets within the baseboard, an adjustable knockout plate 36 is provided on the rear wall 14 at each end of the housing It). The plate 36 is adjustable up and down by loosening the screws 37 threaded into the bracket 38. The knock-out plates 36 may also be reversed from top to bottom, providing for greater latitude of adjustment.

FIGURES 9 and 10 illustrate a modified knock-out plate 36A constructed to fit over what is known as a plastering ring (not shown) for electric outlet boxes.

The thermostat 34 is mounted on a removable cover plate 34A and may be applied to either end of the heating unit H, depending upon the installation involved. The thermostat 34 is installed and wired within the unit. A cover plate 39 is used for covering the opposite compartment 33 not being used by the thermostat 34.

The operation of this new and improved baseboard electric heater H will now be described. Cool air enters the opening 40 between the reflector 18 and the base 11., passing up through the space 41 between the reflector 18 and the rear wall 14 and then through the space 42 above the reflector 18 and out through the elongated slot opening 43 into the room to be heated.

The path of this air passes between the heat that would be deflected back into the wall and carries the heat out into the room. The bulk of the air to be heated enters the elongated opening 44 separately, passes up between the heat radiating fins 27 in front of the rear wall 44 of the reflector 18, out through the slotted opening 46 into the room to be heated, and as stated above some of the heat radiates into the room to be heated, this air not at any time coming in direct contact with the heating element.

Having thus described the preferred embodiments of the invention, it should be understood that numerous structural modifications and adaptations may be resorted to without departing from the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A baseboard electric heater comprising a generally rectangular housing having an upright rear wall, a bottom wall integrally formed thereon and extending forwardly thereof and a top wall integrally formed thereon and ex tending forwardly thereof, said housing having a pair of compartments formed at opposite ends thereof, a pair of spaced apart parallel saddle members secured to said rear wall and extending forwardly therefrom, an elongated electric resistance heater extending longitudinally of said housing, anti-friction means on said saddles supporting said heater for longitudinal expansion movement, a reflector supported on said saddle members within said housing in spaced relation to said housing to provide an air passage between said housing and said reflector, and a grill supported on said saddle members forwardly of said electric resistance heater.

2. A device as claimed in claim 1 wherein a knockout plate is positioned against said rear wall within each of zontally, and a pair of spaced apart rollers journalled on each of said shafts in supporting relation to said electric resistance heater.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,672,683 Knoderer June 5, 1928 1,722,430 Kelly July 30, 1929 1,737,718 Hausmann Dec. 3, 1929 1,906,670 Thomas May 2, 1933 1,911,407 Thomas May 30, 1933 2,574,382 Falson Nov. 6, 1951 2,799,763 Hicks July 16, 1957 2,815,431 Paley Dec. 3, 1957 2,835,478 Bemish May 20, 1958 2,861,167 Nick Nov. 18, 1958 2,899,529 Calhoun Aug. 11, 1959 2,954,456 Calhoun et a1 Sept. 27, 1960 

